Triple Z
by Singe1
Summary: Three warriors, Raze, Dia, and J, must snatch the Prince from Frieza's clutches. After the fact, they have lost the Prince, misplaced his subjects, and have managed to make Frieza suspicious. What now? Hide the Prince!


Warnings: None. 

Disclaimer: Raze, Dia, and J are my characters. Please do not use them. 

Rating: PG-13, for implication and descriptions. 

Author's last-minute note: Have fun reading.

She was getting weary, and her body was burning from the effort she was taxing from it. 

"One-thousand-one..." 

Her planet was gone; only three survivors, that she knew of. 

"One-thousand-two..." 

Her, Dia, and the little girl known as simply J; they were the last. 

"One-thousand-three..." 

Damn him. Frieza had destroyed their kind, as a roving bear destroys evidence of other males. 

"One-thousand-four..." 

She was training; training for the day when she would set her people free and escape this place. 

"One-thousand-five..." 

They, all three of them, were on a planet known as Vegeta-sei, and she knew for a fact that he wanted to conquer it and take their Prince. 

"One-thousand-six..." 

Hell, it was none of her problem. Oh, so much so that she stressed over it all of the few days she had known of it. The Prince was preparing for his transportation to Frieza's ship, and he did know that something was amiss. She could tell by the way his father had looked at them as Frieza had informed him of his son's stay here. 

"One-thousand-seven..." 

His father. He was about to suffer the same fate as their planet had so many years ago. Yet what could she do? Frieza knew she hated him, or knew that she did not like him. What else should he expect? Thus he had to use her power behind her back. Part of the reason so many fell to him without him having to lift a finger was because of their reputation. That was the only reason they were alive, and why J was still a virgin. Dia and her were not, simply because they had had husbands on their planet. Both of them were dead now. At least they did not live the same fate. 

"One-thousand-eight..." 

She started as the intercom came on with a loud crackle. The camera moved to face her and she did not stop her one handed push-ups. Because of the heat of the room, she wore only a v-lined vest that cross-tied in the back, and some tight black shorts. Nonetheless, sweat dripped off her body in various places, and her eyes stung a little. She would have to remember, next time, to wear a bandana. Frieza's voice issued forth when she looked up at the camera. She knew he could see her, despite the darkness in the room. She liked it that way when she trained. She counted in her head as he spoke. 

"Ah, Raze, there you are. I was looking for you everywhere dear." She rolled her eyes while watching the ground as she rose and fell rhythmically. "Well, I was just going to inform you that we will be appearing in King Vegeta's court this afternoon, so be presentable." With that his voice clicked off. 

"One-thousand-twelve..." 

Hmn. What to wear, what to wear? Well, she knew that Frieza did not care whether or not she let on that they were going to conquer the planet, and so settled on her armor. She would wear a vest of special metal that was built to fit the contours of her torso. Also, she would wear leather pants with plates over it of the same stuff. It was from her home planet; what she had been wearing when she was captured. But first, her training, and then she would attend to her outfit. Just then the intercom clicked back on. 

"I meant now, Raze. We will be leaving in two hours." Then his voice was gone. She cursed and tucked her legs under her, rising slowly and walking to the little table with a towel. While she was wiping her face and shoulders down, the doors opened and Dia walked in, with J on her shoulders. Her pudgy little hands around her head and in her layered black hair. It was like a mane, and reached down to the small of her back. It was much like Raze's, only hers was a fire-like red, complete with gold streaks here and there. Raze had blue eyes in the usual large, slanted look typical of her race, while Dia had dark green. All in all, Raze took after flame while Dia took after the forest. J was just coming into her mane, and it only reached down to the shoulders in a mane of bright gold. They all looked like a bunch of flowers, Raze thought as J leapt off Dia's shoulders and ran up to the adult, her blue eyes sparkling. Her eyes were darker than Raze's, and she reminded her of her brother. 

"Oh, Raze. Is it true? Do we really get to meet the Saiyans?" She asked excitedly. Raze raised accusing eyes to meet Dia's. Dia shook her head. 

"It wasn't my fault Raze. She was in our room when Frieza told me. We would have had to take her anyway, so there's no harm in her knowledge." Raze nodded to the little girl. 

"Yes, we are going, but I don't want you talking to any of them, understand?" The little girl pouted, but nodded. "It's for your own good, believe me. I don't want you getting attached to any of them." She turned and threw the towel in the corner, and they walked out of the training room to their own. 

"Have you two cleaned your uniforms already?" She asked them as they entered the room. It was large and held three beds. Two were king-sized, and the other was a twin bed for J. The young warrior ran over and threw herself on it, bouncing twice to her delight. 

"Yes," Dia answered in a resigned voice. "I guess we have to wear them, even though I don't think that Frieza will purge it yet." The room grew quiet at the word. Purging was something that none of them liked to do, even though they had been forced to do it countless times at Frieza's bidding. At least, they had attended the planet while it had been purged. They tried to save as many of the victims as possible, scattering them to all corners of the universe with Frieza none the wiser for it. "We cleaned yours while we were down there." She said, snapping her out of her reverie and handing her the glinting armor. Raze took it and laid it on her bed, undressing on her way to the shower. She sighed as her muscles relaxed under the steaming spray. She turned the hot water up; goose bumps forming as the steam increased in density. A chuckle escaped her parted lips. She couldn't take a cold shower if her life depended on it. She was interrupted as a knock on the glass door sounded. She turned; irritated that someone would interrupt her shower. It was Dia. Her face was turned to allow the girl some privacy, and respect. Raze was the unspoken leader of the three, since she seemed capable of taking care of their present situation the best. 

"Frieza says he wants us on his ship in a half hour, so you might want to hurry." She turned and left when Raze nodded. Raze lathered her hair and then her body. She only liked to rinse off once. When the soap and shampoo was down the drain, she opened the shower door and toweled herself off while walking to their bedroom. As she was slipping on the last piece of the armor, the metal vest, Dia spoke in a low whisper. 

"So, we are going to make the same use of the pods?" She was referring to the space pods they kept in capsules. They put the survivors they found in those and sent them away when they were out of Frieza's henchmen's sights. It was the least they could do, but now what would happen to the Prince? 

"Of course we are." She said firmly. "But don't take chances with your lives. I can't afford to lose any of you. What would I do, well, I know exactly what I would do, but as long as we're together and alive, there is a reason to escape. Now, let's go." Raze walked over to J and lifted her onto Dia's shoulders. Dia followed Raze out the door and down the hallways. Raze was the strongest, and so remained free in case of an attack, which was always plausible on Frieza's ship. The boarded the big ugly craft and reported to the bridge. Dia had on armor similar to Raze's, and J's was the same. Zarbon smirked at them, and Dodoria was nowhere to be seen. Frieza did not turn as Raze stopped near him and bowed to one knee. 

"Well, at least you're not late." He said in his high, feminine voice. "All of you are here?" 

"Yes, Lord Frieza." She said, her voice clearly angry. Her voice was always angry around him, but he didn't seem to mind. In fact, it amused him. 

"Rise, then. We will be landing in three minutes." The ship had taken off almost as soon as they had stepped on, causing them to pause to regain their balance. Now she could see the beautiful red planet through the large window. Too bad it wouldn't be there in a few days. The landing was smooth, as all landings on Frieza's ship were. She was already making plans on how she would rescue the few Saiyans they could later on, when Frieza wasn't with them. Frieza got off first, accompanied by his pet Zarbon, and then the three women followed, with some of his lower lackeys next, and then the ramp closed. The King and his son welcomed them, or sort of welcomed them. It was an icy greeting with stiff bows. Raze paid little attention. Her interest was fixed on the Prince. He was stiff and formal, although he appeared angry, and not the happy little Saiyan youth she pictured earlier. He was mature beyond his years, but lacked something. He seemed to not have that calm knowledge that other rulers had, that his father had. He seemed angry all the time, and a driving ambition clouded his thinking. This was her insight concerning the Prince of Saiyans. They were introduced, the women receiving a brief flick of a glance from the Prince before they were escorted to the royal palace. Raze noticed that Dia kept flicking glances at a particularly large Saiyan guard. He was not that bad-looking really. If he escaped with them, then Raze hoped a romance sparked between them. Dia had grieved long enough, and she knew that both their husbands wanted them to find new love to sustain them. She kept her hands at her sides, letting them sway lightly. Many stares were thrown her way, but she ignored them all. She had to study the Prince and the other Saiyans around her for their functions and strengths. She would have to know these things later on if she was to use them to save some of the race. She snapped to attention as Frieza turned to her when they reached the doors of the throne room. 

"Why don't you and the others go train for a while. I'm sure you can make use of the accommodations they have here." He said, glancing at the King as the monarch signaled for a guard to lead them to the training facilities. Raze did not look back, but noticed that Dia glanced back at the guard she fancied before they disappeared down the corridor. King Vegeta looked at Frieza as the warlord spoke.

"They are my elite next to Zarbon and Jeice." He informed the King and Prince. "And now, let us discuss the visit the Prince here will take with me to my ship." He turned from the doors and they all went into the conversation. Meanwhile, Dia set J down while Raze gave a formal thanks to the guard, and then they spread out in the large, darkly decorated room to begin their training. Raze built up her muscle endurance while Dia practiced her combat moves, and J merely played with her ki in a corner of the room, careful to stay out of her two mentors' way. Soon, though, she grew bored and sighed, watching the adults train. Raze sensed her boredom and smiled, sweat dripping from her arms and forehead as she pushed with one hand, fingers spread and palm off the floor while her other arm was tucked behind her back. She'd pulled her armor off and her shirt, and now wore the leather vest. 

"Hey J, why don't you come over here and sit on my back?" She offered, not pausing as the girl happily got up and scampered over. She smiled at Dia gently as the six-year-old climbed onto her back and sifted till she was comfortable, sitting cross-legged. 

"You're wet, and kind of warm." She said, bracing herself with hands on her shoulder blades. Raze smiled again.  

"That stands to reason," She said as Dia resumed her workout. "Why don't you count for me so I can think of the mission?" J nodded enthusiastically. "Start off from fifty, okay?" J did. The training continued in silence, except for the chirpy voice of J, counting continuously without pause, with Raze never varying. Raze did not pause but lifted her eyes when, an hour later, the doors opened. J did not stop counting, and Dia just gave the guard a glance before returning to her kicks and punches. The guard bowed once and then started talking in a monotone voice. 

"The Prince wishes to speak with you." 

"Five-thousand-nine..." J whispered. 

"Send him in, then." Raze said between rises. The guard nodded and left. Raze looked at Dia, but fixed her gaze on the ground in front of her when the short Prince entered. Dia stopped and bowed to him before resuming her attacks on the air. The Prince did not seem to have a problem with talking to them while they trained.

"Five-thousand-eleven..." The Prince raised an eyebrow, but his voice did not reveal anything. 

"Frieza says you are his second strongest warriors." Raze looked up at him, and then told J to get off, standing with little effort. 

"We are." 

"Which of you is the strongest?" He asked. Dia answered while Raze eyed him. 

"That would be Raze." Raze responded in kind. 

"Dia is the third strongest after me," She informed him, casting a glance at her friend. "And J, the youth that was on my back, is the fourth strongest." He eyes widened a bit in surprise as he looked at the six-year-old, who was holding Raze's hand tightly. The Prince nodded, and then placed his hands behind his back. 

"Frieza is done with council, and he wants you all back on his ship in thirty minutes." Raze cursed and whirled, grabbing up her armor. Without thought of modesty she ripped the leather vest off and jerked on the black shirt, slipping on the metal armor last. Prince Vegeta's face had gone bright red, and he turned and walked out of the room. Dia smirked and followed Raze out a short time later, with J on her shoulders. Suddenly they were all thrown to the ground as a huge boom rent the air and shook the ground. Dust barreled down the hallway and covered their vision like a blanket, with small particle debris raining down on top of them. Raze could barely make out Dia, who was no more than ten feet away and covering J with her body. Silence permeated the air for what seemed like an eternity, but could only have been a few minutes. Raze leapt to her feet and started running, with Dia close behind carrying J in the protective curve of her arms. 

"What's the plan?" Dia asked, a little out of breath since her workout. Raze turned the corner and burst into the throne room of Vegeta-sei, totally unprepared for what she found. The King, or what was left of him, was splattered on the far wall, with the crown a melted gob of metal on the floor. The Prince was standing fighting off some of Frieza's lackeys and the tyrant was nowhere in sight. 

"J, you stay close as possible to Dia. Dia, you grab as many Saiyans as you can within reasonable limits and start sneaking them out. I'll take care of the Prince and then meet you at the location." She darted away and started knocking out Frieza's warriors. They wouldn't remember a thing when they woke up, and she had to get to him. The Prince was in a rage when she reached him, with tears running down his cheeks and a strange red glow to his eyes. It kind of scared her, but that was tough. She grabbed the back of his armor and hauled him out while ignoring his blasts and screams. They streaked down the halls and eventually burst out of the double doors of the palace and flew off into the night, headed for the secret location that Dia had chosen before they had even landed. Frieza had no idea where they were at the moment, or where they would be; that was what counted. 

"What are you doing put me down!!" The Prince screamed incoherently and would have kept on screaming had Raze not slapped him. It wasn't hard enough to hurt, but the act got his attention quick. 

"Saving you. I'm taking you to a secured location where the other two of my kind are helping others of your race escape. This planet must be destroyed now, so that Frieza won't suspect subterfuge, and you must come with us once you've seen your people off. You won't know where they are going, but you will know that they are alive. You will understand more when we get there." She sucked in her breath and continued to fly with him in tow. She didn't entirely trust his reactions right now, and just kept leading him. 


End file.
